ESA - Observing the Earth - Collapse of the ice bridge supporting Wilkins Ice Shelf appears imminent

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Collapse of the ice bridge supporting Wilkins Ice Shelf appears imminent

3 April 2009

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Envisat’s Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) captured the early stage of the disruption of the ice bridge that connects the Wilkins Ice Shelf to Charcot and Latady Islands on 2 April 2009 at 05:18 UTC. The new rifts that developed along the length axis of the ice bridge are visible. The first detachment along these new rifts occurred about seven hours later.

Credits: ESA (Annotations by A. Humbert, Münster University)

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The first detachment of an iceberg is seen in this Envisat Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) image acquired on 2 April 2009 at 11:55 UTC. As visible, the rift perpendicular to the length axis widened as the iceberg formed.

Credits: ESA (Annotations by A. Humbert, Münster University)

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This image, acquired by Envisat’s Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) sensor on 26 November 2008, shows new rifts on the Wilkins Ice Shelf that developed from 10 August to 26 November 2008. These rifts joined previously existing rifts (denoted by blue-dotted line). The development of these rifts threatens to collapse the ice bridge that has been preventing the ice shelf from disintegrating and breaking away from the Antarctic Peninsula.

Dr Angelika Humbert from the Institute of Geophysics, Münster University, provided the interpretations on the image.

Credits: A. Humbert, Münster University, Germany (based on ESA Envisat images)

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This image of the Wilkins Ice Shelf was acquired on 13 January 1992 using ERS-1's SAR instrument. Shades of grey have been assigned to backscatter values, white indicates no backscatter, black indicates high backscatter.

Credits: ESA

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Break-ups of Larsen-B and Wilkins ice shelves

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Map showing break-up events of Larsen-B and Wilkins ice shelves, as observed by Envisat, in Antarctica.

Credits: ESA

'Webcam' from Space:
Wilkins Ice Shelf